Cat Johnson Braves Doll Lil’s Word Association Challenge!

Kitt: Hi Jackie! Welcome back to Paperback Dolls!

Jackie: Thanks so much for inviting me. :)

Kitt: The first time you were here was during our Romantic Times Feature last year, but we never really had a chance to know you, can you tell our readers who you are?

Jackie: I’m just gal who married her true love, had two kids, likes to break boards, and strongly advocates chocolate as its own food group. Also, I write stories.

Kitt: Will you tell us about your book, LOSS, releasing this Tuesday?

Jackie: LOSS is about a bullied teenage boy who is tricked into becoming the new Pestilence, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. It’s the third book in the Riders of the Apocalypse series, but it could be read as a standalone novel. A portion of proceeds will be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association. (Alzheimer’s is a subplot in the book.)

Kitt: What is your current state of mind?

Jackie: Tired, but striving for good cheer.

Kitt: What is your favorite occupation?

Jackie: Chocolate taster. Oh, wait – did you mean one of **my** occupations?

Kitt: Way of spending time?

Jackie: Lately? Catching Supernatural reruns, doing tae kwon do, and bird watching.

Kitt: What historical figure do you most identify with?

Jackie: I have no idea. I should have paid more attention in history class.

Kitt: Which living person do you most admire?

Jackie: My loving husband. Seriously. I don’t know how he puts up with me. But I love him, admire him, am thankful for him. (Rereading all of my interview answers, I see that Loving Husband comes up a lot. And that’s right. I fell in love with him when I was a teenager, and we’ve been together now for almost 17 years (first dating, then marriage). He makes me a better person.)

Kitt: Who is your favorite fictional hero? Heroine?

Jackie: Hero? Harry Dresden. (I even have the button that says: HARRY DRESDEN IS MY HERO.) Heroine? Tiffany Aching.

Kitt: Who are your real-life heroes?

Jackie: My loving husband (see above).

Kitt: What is your most treasured possession?

Jackie: My wedding band. Actually, I lost my first one back in November. I recently lost 20 pounds, and the darn thing just slipped off when I wasn’t looking. Couldn’t find it. So Loving Husband and I went shopping for a new band, one that closely matched the old one. He even got his redone to better match my new one.

Kitt: When and where were you the happiest?

Jackie: Lots of happy moments. There are times when my kids make me so proud that it brings tears to my eyes. And Loving Husband is just phenomenal. I’ve gotten email from readers telling me how much the Riders books have meant to them — a number of people shared that they have stopped injuring themselves after reading RAGE. I can’t begin to describe how amazing it feels to hear from people that something you did really helped them.

Kitt: What is your most obvious characteristic?

Jackie: I’m short. Really short. Like, under five-feet short. (But I used to be five-foot-three in the 1980s, thanks to Big Hair and AquaNet.)

Kitt: What is the trait you most deplore (hate) in yourself?

Jackie: I tend to think everything is my fault, even when it’s not. I’m working on this one, because just as it’s unfair to blame others for your problems, it’s also unfair to blame yourself for something you didn’t do.

Kitt: What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Jackie: Willful selfishness.

Kitt: What is your greatest extravagance?

Jackie: CHOCOLATE. And wine. Ooh – WINE AND CHOCOLATE!!!

Kitt: What is your favorite journey?

Jackie: “Don’t Stop Believin’.” ;)

Kitt: What do you most dislike about your appearance?

Jackie: I’d love to lose a few inches off my hips/butt/thighs.

Kitt: What do you consider the most over-rated virtue?

Jackie: I’m too much of a sinner to even know what the virtues are.

Kitt: On what occasion do you lie?

Jackie: There have been times when I haven’t told my kids the full truth. Selective truth is a lie, I know. But I really want to protect them as much as I can, without sheltering them too much. It’s a fine line. And now that they’re getting older, this happens less.

Kitt: What is your greatest fear?

Jackie: Gradually losing my mind to dementia or Alzheimer’s. Both run in my family. Both terrify me more than I could ever say.

Kitt: Which words or phrases do you most over-use?

Jackie: If I knew, I wouldn’t overuse them. ;)

Kitt: If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Jackie: I’d stop making myself responsible for other people’s actions. This is part of the “everything is my fault” mindset that I’m working to change.

Kitt: What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Jackie: Being a mom! Whew. These guys keep me on my toes. Second: being a published author.

Kitt: Where would you like to live?

Jackie: I love where I live now. That being said, I wouldn’t mind a second home someplace sunny and warm more often than not.

Kitt: What is the quality you most admire in a man? In a woman?

Jackie: Having the conviction to say what you mean and mean what you say.

Kitt: What is it you most dislike? In a man? A woman?

Jackie: See willful selfishness, above.

Kitt: What do you value most in your friends?

Jackie: Communication. Friends always talk — through good times and bad. Plus, friends share excellent wine. :)

Kitt: If you could choose, how would you like to die?

Jackie: You realize how ironic this question is, given that one of my characters is Death, and I’m currently writing his book, right? ;)

Kitt: If you were to die and come back as a person or an animal, what do you think it would be?

Jackie: I’d like another go as a person. Ideally, one with a wonderful singing voice.

Kitt: If you could choose an object to come back as, what would you choose?

Jackie: No idea.

Kitt: Who has been the greatest influence on you?

Jackie: As a writer? Neil Gaiman. He’s been my inspiration for years. As a person? Loving Husband.

Kitt: What is your motto? Words you live by or that mean a lot to you.

Jackie: Loving Husband and I tell each other “It’s all good.” Because it really is. Life is what we make of it. Crap happens, God knows. But that doesn’t have to define us. So “It’s all good” — even the parts that can sort of suck.

Kitt: We want to thank you so much for taking the time to visit us again and answer all our silly questions! We are super thrilled to have you back on Paperback Dolls. Best of Luck to you!

Jackie: Thanks so much, Kitt!

Jackie Morse Kessler grew up in Brooklyn, NY, with a cranky cat and overflowing shelves filled with dolls and books. Now she’s in Upstate NY with another cranky cat, a loving husband, two sons, and overflowing shelves filled with dragons and books (except when her sons steal her dragons). She has a bachelor’s degree in English and American Literature, and yet she’s never read any Jane Austen (with or without zombies). She also has a master’s degree in media ecology. (The living study of technology and culture. Which is cool, but she still can’t figure out how to use Tweetdeck.)

Jackie spends a lot of time writing, reading, and getting distracted by bright and shiny new ideas. (She just came up with a new idea right now.) She has a weakness for chocolate and a tendency to let her cat take over her office chair.

Find Jackie Morse Kessler:
Website | Blog | | |

GIVEAWAY: One lucky commenter below will win a small cover poster of LOSS—and will be entered in the grand prize drawing! The grand prize winner will receive signed copies of HUNGER, RAGE and LOSS—and will get to name a character in BREATH, the fourth book in the Riders of the Apocalypse series. The grand prize winner will be picked on Sunday, April 1, 2012. No foolin’.

Giveaway Rules from Paperback Dolls: Leave a comment for Jackie to enter her giveaway. Make sure you leave an email address she can contact you by. By entering this giveaway you are agreeing to our Giveaway Policy, so make sure you read them! This giveaway for the small cover poster of LOSS will end March 24th and the winner will be announced on March 25th. Giveaway is US only please.